My seedlings have become very spindely. They are ready to start going to the green house for daily visits. My question is will they improve and become sturdy? I know they should be transplanted into deeper dirt but I really don't want to do that yet. Opinions? Ideas? MJ
Sound like they are reaching for light.
I know and they are about to get lots but will they fill out a little or will they just get top heavy and break?
I find they will fill out. IF they can make through the first transplanting. I plant four times the seedlings I need and choose the the stoutest plants. More light is needed for your seedlings.
or move the light closer.... inverse square.
I think once they become long and thin, they will generally stay that way for the rest of their little plant lives. They'll still grow and produce decent fruits & veggies, but maybe not quite as abundantly as a short stout plant. Eventually, if they get too far gone in being long and thin (from deprivation of adequate light), the chance of fruiting goes down by a decent amount.
Seedlings need lots of light the minute they break out of the soil. Just a note for the next time....
I start mine indoors near the end of winter and right when they sprout, I put a fluorescent light over them right away. Hook up a cheap lamp timer to the lights if you want to control the hours. It's pretty amazing how fast some of these seedlings can grow when they're young. Sometimes even and inch or two a day. The bigger the seeds, the faster the sprouting growth. So put the light on them quick.
The downside about having short, long plants (even if they can produce normal fruit) is that they are vulnerable to high winds and can snap in half and die a lot easier.
Angello
Depends what they are. With solanaceae (chillis, tomatoes, aubergines, etc) you can transplant the seedlings so that they are deeper in the soil, put them in improved light, and in a few weeks you'll never know they were spindly. When they have a few leaves, you can prune the top of to encourage them to bush out, if appropriate, also. But such tactics can be inappropriate for other kinds of plants.
That must be why mine all die. Not enough constant light to grow.
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